Japan’s JETRO to expand investments in SL

Wednesday, 23 October 2013 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Japan External Trade Organisation (JETRO) has found Sri Lanka’s skilled workforce and strong infrastructure advantageous to foreign investors, according to the organisation’s Executive Vice President Soichi Yoshimura.

He said this when he met Economic Development Minister Basil Rajapaksa at the Ministry office to discuss Japanese investments in Sri Lanka. Yoshimura is visiting Sri Lanka accompanied by high powered 40-member Japanese business delegation of his organisation. JETRO was established by the Japanese Government in 1958 and is Japan’s principal organisation for implementing trade policy on a comprehensive basis. The main task of JETRO is to boost foreign direct investment in Japan, promote cooperation between industries in Japan and other developed nations and encourage international exchange on a variety of levels. Speaking further Yoshimura said that he and his team visited the Koggala and Katunayake Free Trade Zones to observe the manufacture of export items by skilled and educated personnel under the direction of the Board of Investment (BOI). He said that he hoped investors would find a good opportunity to turn out quality products in sufficient quantity and noted that Sri Lanka geographical location and natural environment was advantageous in this area. The Japanese team’s arrival is the result of Minister Basil Rajapaksa’s visit last month to Japan where he conferred with the JETRO on Japanese investment possibilities in Sri Lanka, following President Rajapaksa’s Japan tour early this year. During the discussions here the Minister Rajapaksa focused attention on the expanding Sri Lanka-Japan economic cooperation and expressed his appreciation of Japan’s contribution to the development of the island’s infrastructure and technology among other fields. Industry and Commerce Ministry Secretary Anura Siriwardena, BOI Chairman Dr. Lakshman Jayaweera and Japanese Ambassador in Sri Lanka Nobuhito Hobo were among those who participated in the discussion at the Ministry.